Sylas Vaughn’s face was dark, and he glared at Selena Sinclair through gritted teeth, wishing he could strangle her on the spot.
Selena Sinclair paid him no mind.
She walked straight to the door, put her hands on her hips, her eyes sharp and her tone resolute.
“Miss Hayes, do you see?
My husband doesn’t love you.
Otherwise, why don’t you go and try to convince him?”
Three years ago, she would never have said such things.
But it was different now.
She had already chosen to step aside, yet Sylas Vaughn was still clinging to her.
Deep sorrow filled Hannah Hayes’s eyes.
She gazed at Sylas Vaughn and called out softly, “Sylas.”
Her gentle, heart-rending tone instantly stirred his impulse to protect her.
‘This demeanor was completely different from the one she had seen at Vantage a few days ago.’
Selena Sinclair felt a wave of disgust as she watched Hannah’s pitiful act.
‘She desperately wanted to rip off that hypocritical mask and make Sylas Vaughn see the true colors of the woman he longed for.’
Sylas Vaughn picked up the divorce agreement from the table.
Then came a sharp SCRATCH—the crisp sound of a pen tip landing on paper with undeniable force.
An instant later, he snatched up the agreement, strode over, and threw it in her face.
“Are you satisfied now?”
The papers drifted down around her head like dry leaves in an autumn wind, a seeming omen that everything between them had withered and come to an end.
Then, only his cold words were left echoing in the air.
“And don’t forget to go back to the estate tomorrow to settle everything.”
As his voice faded, the door slammed shut with a vicious BANG.
Her heart clenched violently, and tears welled in her eyes.
She bent down and picked up the agreement from the floor.
Staring at the familiar, elegant handwriting, her heart churned with a maelstrom of emotions.
The divorce agreement she had longed for was finally in her hands, yet her heart still ached as if being pierced by needles.
She grabbed her nearby phone and dialed Mr.
Vaughn’s number.
Not long after, a luxurious Maybach pulled up outside Vaughn Manor.
The car door opened and an elderly butler stepped out.
“Ma’am,” he said, “Mr.
Vaughn sent me to pick you up.”
Selena Sinclair looked at the butler before her, dressed simply with his hair combed neatly back.
He was like one of the meticulously pruned shrubs at Vaughn Manor, exuding an undeniable air of solemnity and formality.
She gave a slight nod.
“Mr.
Chapman.”
Knowing he was one of Mr.
Vaughn’s people, she immediately got in the car.
“Ma’am, you look very pale.
Are you feeling unwell?”
Mr.
Chapman asked with concern, noticing her pallor.
“I’m…
I’m fine.” She touched her forehead, not daring to tell Mr.
Chapman that she had actually caught a cold yesterday.
“Ma’am, you have a fever!”
He reached out to feel her forehead, then said decisively, “We need to get you to a hospital.”
“Mr.
Chapman, I have something urgent I must discuss with Grandpa first.
Please just take me to the estate, and I’ll go to the hospital on my own afterward.”
‘Since Sylas Vaughn had already signed, her goal was achieved.
She didn’t want any further entanglement with the Vaughn Family.’
‘It was best to resolve everything at once and avoid further complications.’
“But you have a fever.
How can you not see a doctor?” Mr.
Chapman insisted.
“It’s really nothing.
I just need to say a few words to Grandpa, and I’ll go straight to the hospital afterward.
Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.”
“Ma’am, Mr.
Vaughn is aware of what’s happened with you and the young master.
There’s no need to rush.
The most important thing is for you to get well first.”
Selena Sinclair froze for a moment, then considered.
‘With how shrewd Mr.
Vaughn is, how could he not know how bad things have gotten between us?’
‘He must have understood her decision ever since she picked up that file from him.’
“There’s no need.
I’m really fine,” she replied, rubbing her nose.
Unable to sway her, Mr.
Chapman fell silent with a sigh of resignation.
Mr.
Vaughn had been in poor health lately, spending nearly every day either at the hospital or a nursing home.
He rarely returned to the estate.
Under Mr.
Chapman’s guidance, Selena Sinclair arrived at a nursing home in Brookfall.
From a distance, she saw Mr.
Vaughn sitting in a pavilion, chatting idly with other seniors.
Although the years had stripped Mr.
Vaughn of his former heroic bearing, his commanding aura was as strong as ever.
Two stone-faced bodyguards stood beside him, adding to the grim atmosphere.
Even from a distance, Selena Sinclair was awed by Mr.
Vaughn’s powerful aura.
Even though she had visited Mr.
Vaughn with her own grandfather many times, she was still not used to being alone with him.
After a long moment, the old man beckoned to her, and she slowly made her way over.
“Grandpa,” she greeted respectfully.
Mr.
Chapman stood beside the old man, a picture of solemn dignity.
“Sit.” The old man held his cane and lightly tapped a stone stool beside him.
Selena Sinclair did as she was told, sitting on the stool.
The old man sighed, whether in lament of her life, her choices, or simply out of resignation, it was impossible to say.
…
After leaving Vaughn Manor, Sylas Vaughn sat in his car, growing more furious the more he thought about what had happened.
He couldn’t calm down.
He had been desperately trying to win Selena Sinclair back all this time.
And yet, it was her own sharp words that had provoked him into signing.
The thought alone made it impossible for him to be calm.
Hannah Hayes sat quietly beside him, not daring to utter a word.
She glanced up at Sylas Vaughn from time to time, but she never dared to speak.
The car jerked to a sudden stop on the side of the road.
As if sensing something was wrong, Hannah Hayes asked nervously, “Sylas, you…”
Sylas Vaughn’s face was like stone.
“Get a cab and go home,” he said coldly.
Hannah Hayes froze, her expression changing in an instant.
“What do you mean?”
“Do I need to repeat myself?”
Sylas Vaughn had a bad temper, but he had never spoken to her this way or used such a tone with her before.
So when Sylas Vaughn treated her like this, she was left completely stunned.
“Sylas Vaughn, what is the meaning of this?!”
Before she could say another word, he got out of the car, went around to the passenger side, and pulled Hannah Hayes out.
“Be a good girl.
Go home and wait for me,” he said.
“I have some things to take care of.
I’ll come see you when I’m finished!”
His words carried a hint of consolation, as if he had always doted on her so.
Hannah Hayes stood stunned for a long while.
She only snapped out of it after Sylas Vaughn had left her on the curb and driven off into the distance.
Just as Sylas Vaughn pulled up to the house, Selena Sinclair was walking out.
Mr.
Chapman was with her.
Once Selena Sinclair was in a taxi, Mr.
Chapman got in after her, his face grim.
Sitting in the back seat, Selena Sinclair leaned her head against the window, her expression strangely calm.
The old man’s words echoed in her mind.
Sylas Vaughn gripped the steering wheel, swerved to give chase, and quickly forced the taxi to a stop.
The driver muttered and rolled down his window, but he instinctively clamped his mouth shut when he saw the man who emerged from the luxury car toss a wad of cash at him.
Before Selena Sinclair could figure out what was going on, her head slammed into the seat in front of her, making her already dizzy head swim.
Before she could make sense of it all, a strong arm was yanking her forcefully from the car.